'Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -- I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.' Robert Frost

Saturday, October 21, 2006

Uh Oh. I Won't Let It Happen...

I've become a lazy blogger, only taking the time to post when I am too tired to be creative or too inebriated to recall what I've been doing and thinking about lately. This time, it's the latter state I am currently enjoying..

I've been thinking about change a lot lately. It all started with my hair. I've had the same basic hairstyle for about four years now. Personally, I think it suits me and I get more compliments on it than I ever did with any previous style, although this may be simply because I DO style my hair now instead of letting it dry into a frizzball... Anyhoo, lately I seem to be enamoured with the idea of change - I've moved to a new country, got a new job and am challenging myself with Bootcamp and marathon training, so why not give the ole' do a revamp as well, I thought to myself.

Well when you've got short hair there's really only one viable option (unless you want to pull a Sinead O'Connor). So there I was trying to grow my hair out, I'd even got to the point where I was wearing it in a hairband and people were telling me it looked 'cute'. Oh the joy. Anyways, I inevitably got frustrated with it and decided to just stick with my usual style. I debated this decision a lot. I wanted to embrace change, I wanted to see what a new style would do for me, but then I realised I had that hair a long time ago and it was never good. And now, just because I've had this short spiky do for awhile, it doesn't mean I need to change it. Why change a good thing?

And so it should be in politics. Why did Canadians jump on that change train and re-invite a harsh form of conservatism back into our nation? I must admit, I haven't really been following the news from home as much as I should, but I did learn what Harper has gutted from our identity as Canadians and it truly made me sick to my stomach. Literacy, opportunities for youth to learn more about our nation, women's advocacy, and, of course, the environment.

I understand the desire for change (hello, I am living half way around the world), but really, should we not give more thought to whether change really is for the better. I know there are a load of cliches out there that basically encourage blind faith in change. Sigh. I fear that our nation has taken about five steps back with the election of a Reform government that is masquerading as Conservative. I shudder to think what will happen if we have another election nad they gain a majority government. I am not being an alarmist - there are serious implications for each and every Canadian if this happens. Already, I can see our distinctive Canadian values being whittled away - just take a look at the Government of Canada's website now - www.canada.gc.ca. Where before the Liberals focussed on informing Canada about things like Health Care and Education and Immigration, the focus now seems to be on our Military roles, making Canda a 'safe' place (Im sorry - I missed the part where Canadians felt their country was an unsafe place) and maintaining a fiscal balance by cutting significant social programs that were in place to support all Canadiasn - not just the ones who are wealthy. Oh and by the way, when Mulroney (last conservative PM) left office he left a staggering deficit for the Liberals to deal with. That was in 1992. For the past 4 years or so, Canada has produced a surplus budget - we've been economically stable and strong for a few years now, so I'm not sure why Harper felt it necessary to cut so many programs to save our country from a deficit. Unless it was just out of spite or because the only way he believes in supporting the citizens of a nation is by giving them tax breaks.

So, yah, my point is that change is not always a good thing. So think twice before you blindly embrace it. Also think twice before you let things remain the status quo. Hm..I guess what I am saying is - we all need to think just a bit more critically.

K - there is my inebriated philisophical/political rant for the week. Good night.

My Journey

Food feeds the body, the mind and the soul. It connects everything and yet we are now completely disconnected from it. This, then, is my journey towards food connectedness, understanding interdependence and being independent of the dominant food system.